A local bowhunter paralyzed from the waist down following a fall from a tree is striving to walk again and keep his business open.

Geoff Newmyer, 24, of Fruitport Township, began the rehabilitation process Thursday, transferring to Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital in Grand Rapids. With the help of his friends, his business, Newmyer Plumbing, continues to operate.

Geoff Newmyer injured his back Sunday morning while hunting with his brother and father, Tom Newmyer, in Free Soil.

Josh Newmyer, 26, said the three were done hunting for the weekend and were preparing to leave when the incident occurred. He said his brother was climbing down a tree after removing his tree stand when a limb broke and Geoff Newmyer fell about 15 feet to the ground.

With no cell phone service available in the woods, Josh Newmyer drove seven miles to a gas station to call 911. First-responding firefighters and ambulances arrived on the scene, and Geoff Newmyer was taken to a hospital in Ludington.

He was later taken to Hackley Hospital in Muskegon before being transferred to Spectrum in Grand Rapids.

Josh Newmyer said his brother "broke his back, and they had to reconstruct a couple of vertebrae and fuse a couple vertebrae together."

For the complete story, return to mlive.com/chronicle on Saturday, or pick up a copy of Saturday's Muskegon Chronicle.